Banners, flags and objects of a similar nature are widely used to convey information and provide aesthetic appeal. Such banners are typically suspended at a height so that the banner is prominent and visible from some distance. It is well known that devices such as flag poles and banner poles, whether standing on the ground or mounted on a wall, building or other surface, can be used to suspend banners. Due to the prominence, symbolic significance and typically publicly accessible location of banners, they are often the target of unauthorised operation or tampering, such as vandalism or theft.
A method well known in the art for attaching a banner to a banner pole at a height is the use of a halyard or similar device. The halyard allows a person to attach the banner to the halyard at ground level and then raise the banner to the appropriate height using the halyard and an elevated guiding arrangement. A disadvantage of the halyard is that a thief or vandal can also access the halyard at ground level and use the halyard to lower and steal or vandalise the banner.
It is understood in the art that the disadvantage of poor security can be mitigated by enclosing a portion of the halyard in the banner pole, such that unauthorised access to, and operation of, the halyard by a thief or vandal is inhibited. Access to the halyard can be provided via a security hatch, such as a locked door, in the banner pole which can only be opened using a security device, such as a key.
It is not always possible to enclose the halyard in the banner pole or to access the inside of the banner pole. The banner pole may not be hollow, for instance, in the case of wooden or concrete telegraph poles. Alternatively, a person may wish to attach a banner to a structure other than a banner pole, for instance, a solid wall or column.
Even if a banner is to be attached to a hollow pole, it still may not be possible to enclose the halyard in the pole or to access the interior of the pole. In the case of street light poles, the authority responsible for the poles may not permit access to, or a halyard to be located in, the inside of the light poles. Additionally, light poles may have internal contents, such as electrical wiring, which the halyard could damage or interfere with.
Where the halyard is not enclosed in the banner pole and is external to the banner pole, it is exposed to unauthorised access by thieves or vandals and the banner is accordingly vulnerable.
An alternate method for raising banners well known in the art is the use of a lifting device, such as a cherry picker. The lifting device can be used to lift a person holding a banner to the appropriate height on a banner pole. The person then attaches and secures the banner to the banner pole. This method offers improved banner security. By eliminating the halyard, a lifting device is required to access, raise or lower the banner. The banner cannot be readily accessed by thieves or vandals from the ground level.
However the use of a lifting device has a number of disadvantages. To raise or lower a banner, a lifting device may need to be hired and operated by trained personnel at significant cost. The lifting device must be manoeuvred into place, often taking some time and causing disruption to the area surrounding the banner pole. For instance, in the case of banner poles located next to a roadway, traffic on the roadway may be disrupted and, to minimise such disruption, the lifting device may only be deployed at night.
Any discussion in the present specification of documents, publications, acts, devices, substances, articles, materials and the like is included for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention and is not an admission that the subject matter of the discussion forms part of the prior art base, or is part of the common general knowledge of the technical field relevant to the present invention, as at the relevant priority date or dates.